Improvement in grain-binders



compressing the loose grain.

UNITED STATES PATENT CET-LCE SYLVANUS D. LOGKE, OF JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN. l

IMPROVEMENT IN GRAIN-BINDERS.

Specz'jicati'on forming part of Letters Patent No. 51,599, dated December 19, 1865*; anfcdatcd June .To all whom fit may concern Beit known that I, SYLvANUs D. LooKE, of the city of Janesville, county ot' Rock, and State of Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful machine known as a machine for compressing the gavels or unbound bundles of grain on a grain-binding machine; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and 'exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference bein g had to the accompanying drawings, makin g a part of this specification, like characters referring to like parts in each figure.

The nature of my invention consists in the employment ot' a yielding or elastic arm'to compress the loose or unbound bundles of grain in a grain-binding machine, so that thereby bundles of unequal size are compressed with the same yielding though equal force.

The nature ot' my invention consists, also, in the combinationv ot' a cam producing an intermittent motion with a reciproca-ting, yielding, or elastic compressing-arm and a curvilinear grain-guard, allowing the diierent operations otl compressing the bundles and securing the bands around them to be done alternately.

Io enable others skilled in the mechanic arts to construct and operate my machine, I will refer to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure lis a side view of my machine, showing the manner ot' its attachments to a grainbinding machine. Fig. 2 is a view at right angles to Fig. 1, with the grain-guard A, compressing-arm B, and standard C cut away, so as to more fully show the operating-cam G and connections. Fig. 3 represents another form ot' the operating-cam.

The grain-guard A, Figs. l and 2, is made curvilinear, as shown, to aid in gathering and The compressing-arm B is secured to the shaft a, which takes bearing in the standard C. -The crank or arm D, attached to the shaft u, is operated by the connecting-rod E, on the end of which is the cam G. The connecting-rod E slides freely up and down in the rounded upper portion g ofthe'cam G, and is prevented from being withdrawn by the pin f. A regulatingnut, however, is preferable to thel pin. Theoffice of the spiral spring F is to allow the counectingrod E to shorten or lengthen sufciently when opera-ting to permit the arm B to adjust itself to the size of the bundle within the grain-guard A. The crank K is attached to the driving or supplementary shaft L ot' a grain-binding machine, and works, by means ofthe wrist-pin I, in the cam G, imparting to it a reciprocating motion.

The standards or guides H H have grooved ways,into which the cam is fitted, and in which it slides or travels when in operation. I prefer, however, to make cam with grooves traveling on raised ways in II H.

Another form or equivalent of the cam G is shown in Fig. 3, in which G is the body ofthe cam, h the cam-groove, and t' the center of mot-ion, or an orifice into which is inserted the driving-shaft. This form ofthe cam will impart the same motion to the compressing-arm B as the cam G, Figs. l and 2, but, when used, must be attached to the shaft L instead of to the connecting-rod E. It is necessary, also, when this form is used, to extend the connecting rod, or rather the rounded upper portion g of the cam G, downward in the form of a plain rod, with a wrist-pin on the end, working in the cam-groove l1..

The same intermittent motion to the arm B may be effected by a cylindrical cam secured to a vertical shaft,'or rather to a shaft running parallel to the connecting-rod.

S, T, and U represent the base or bed plate of a grain-binding machine, while V V are supports to the grain-guard; 0 O, bearings or boxes for the shaft L; P, a driving wheel or sheave, and R a crank or handle.

It will readily be seen that when the shaft L revolves, the crank K drives the cam G downward, taking with it the connecting-rod and raising the compressing-arm B, at which time the bundle ot loose or unbound grain is raked against the guard A, when the shaft and crank, continuing to revolve, force upward the cam G, driving downward the arm B against the bundle, and compressing it with the full force of the spring F. When the full force of the spring F is expended, it' the cam continues to ascend, the spring allows the connecting-rod to shorten until the crank reaches its upward limit, when, owing to the peculiar construction of the cam, the parts are all retained in the position last described sufficiently long to permit the band to be secured around the bundle, When the arm B is again raised to allow the discharge of the bundle and the admission of another, the connectingrod E again assuming its original length, The spring F may be made of rubber or other elastic material, and the intermittent cam, as here described, may be employed to operate a rigid as Well as an elastic reciprocating compressing-arm. It is also unimportant whether the upper portion of the cam slides in the connecting-rod, or the reverse, or, indeed, however they may be attached, so long as the elasticity of the arm B is retained.

A machine constructed as above described combines the advantages alike of an elastic strap and a rigid compressing-arm, without either the difficulties attending the operation of the one or the non-elasticity of the other.

What I claim, and for which I desire Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. The combination of a yielding or elastic compressing-arm with a curvilinear grainguard, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination of a cani producing an v intermittent motion with a reciprocating, yielding, or elastic compressing-arm and a curvilinear grain-guard, substantially -as and for the purpose set forth.

S. D. LOCKE.

XVitnesses G. H. WILLIsToN, K. W. BEMIs. 

